Any place that you visit (or move to) will have little
quirks—things that are different than you’re used to. Ukarumpa is no exception
to this; there are several things that, when I first arrived, took a while to
get used to. After three years of living in Ukarumpa, being in the US for
several months and not using or needing these things was even more odd!
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My two huge water tanks!
I shouldn't run out of water this year ☺
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I’ll start with all things water, because water is so
important and the ways we collect and store water here are so different. Each
house in Ukarumpa has a water tank (either plastic or steel), which is filled
by rainwater running off the roofing steel into a system of gutters that drain
into the water tank. During rainy season, this is no problem. From
October/November to about May, we get plenty of rain to fill our tanks. During
the dry season, however, we don’t get regular heavy rains that fill the tanks,
so we have to watch our water usage so that the tanks don’t run dry. I guess I
should also explain that tank water is not our only source of water. We also
use what we call RAM water (I have no idea what RAM stands for) that is pumped
from a nearby river. That water is used for flushing toilets, doing laundry,
and sometimes for hot water. It is not safe to drink untreated, because there
are lots of microorganisms that can make you super sick.
Speaking of treating water, many houses in Ukarumpa (not
all, though) have water filters. Some people get sick even drinking “clean”
tank water (I say “clean” because it is only clean compared to the river water—it
hasn’t been filtered), so they use a filter to avoid having stomach issues all
the time! I have discovered that unfiltered tank water does not make me sick,
so I don’t get too worried about filtering my drinking water. However, if the
house I’m living in does have a filter, I go ahead and use it…why not?!
One more water-related thing that I am SO thankful for is
the electric hot water backup. It is a magical little button that you push when
you haven’t seen the sun in days, and—voila!—you have hot water! (It is
electric, so every time you push the button, you pay for it…but taking a cold,
or even lukewarm shower when it’s 55F in the morning is not a fun experience!)
This last thing has nothing to do with water, but really
messed with my mind when I first arrived—outlets that have an on/off switch. I
don’t know how many times I’ve plugged something in, left it overnight, and
then realised that I never turned the outlet on! Thankfully I’ve gotten much
better about remembering to turn on the outlet before walking away or going to
bed. Every so often I’ll plug in my mixer or some other appliance, turn it on,
start freaking out that it isn’t working, and then sheepishly remember that I
need to turn on the power first. What was really funny, though, is that when I
was in the US, I kept looking for the switches on the outlets! I guess it
doesn’t take that long for something to become normal!
What comforts me through all these changes and transitions,
is the knowledge that God never changes. He is the same yesterday, today, and
forever, sovereign over all things—the rain, the sun, and everything in my life
(and yours!). Praise God for that!
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